Download Full-fit reconstructions of the southern Australian margin

Full-fit reconstructions of the southern Australian margin and
Antarctica – implications for correlating geology between Australia and
Antarctica
Simon E. Williams1, Joanne M. Whittaker1, and R. Dietmar Müller1
Keywords: Australia, Antarctica, Gondwana, plate tectonics, full-fit reconstruction, continental rifting, Southern Margin.
Abstract
The sedimentary basins along the southern Australian and
conjugate Antarctic margins formed as a result of Mesozoic
rifting. A number of alternative models have been proposed for the
pre-rift configuration of Australia and Antarctica. They differ both
in how tight the fit between these continents is, and in the lateral
juxtaposition of the two continents, ie. some reconstructions place
Australia further to the east, relative to a fixed Antarctica, than
others. The continuity of comparable geological terranes, surfacemapped shear-zones, and geophysical signatures (e.g. magnetic
anomalies) between Australia and Antarctica within Gondwana
has implications for assessing these different reconstruction
models.
To investigate this issue, we tested a range of scenarios for
the full-fit configuration of Australia and Antarctica. In the light
of palinspastic reconstructions of the extended continental crust
within each margin, we investigate how different reconstruction
models reconcile geological and geophysical signatures from the
conjugate plates. We find that a model that matches the Leeuwin
Fracture Zone (in the Australian margin) with the Vincennes
Fracture Zone (in the Antarctic margin) reconciles Proterozoic
structures previously correlated between the continents based on
their geological similarity. These include rocks from the AlbanyFraser orogeny, and the Kalinjala mylonite zone and Mertz shear
zones. This model also reconciles the constraints from palinspastic
reconstruction of Mesozoic extension better than models
that place Australia further east or west relative to Antarctica
within Gondwana. This model does not produce a postulated
alignment between the Darling Fault in Western Australia and
the Denman Glacier in Western Wilkes Land. The preferred fullfit reconstruction model, together with other evidence from the
early breakup history between the Australian and Antarctic plates,
suggests that the overall opening direction between the two
continents was broadly NNW-SSE, but this includes phases of N-S
and NW-SE–directed extension.
Introduction
The Australian and Antarctic continents were neighbours
in Gondwana, before continental rifting and breakup in the
Cretaceous. Many studies of the older geological domains in each
of these continents have sought to establish the links between
1 Earthbyte Group, School of Geosciences, The University of Sydney,
Australia
Brisbane, QLD, 10–14 September, 2012
structures bordering the conjugate continental margins on each
side of the Southern Ocean (e.g. Stump et al, 1986; Foster and
Gleadow, 1992; Fitzsimons, 2003; Goodge and Fanning, 2010;
Flottmann and Oliver, 1994; Gibson et al, 2011; Cayley, 2011;
Veevers, 2012). Some of these studies draw correlations within
the framework of schematic reconstruction sketches. Others
consider the configuration of the continents based on Euler poles
of rotation from a single chosen model for the full-fit configuration
of Australia and Antarctica. However, various alternative models
have been proposed for the full-fit configuration and early seafloor
spreading history and direction of relative plate motions during
continental rifting. These different models lead to large differences
in the lateral position of Australia relative to Antarctica within
Gondwana. This in turn has major implications for the alignment
of the geological and geophysical ‘piercing points’ identified in
each continent.
To investigate this issue, we tested a range different
reconstructions for the full-fit configuration of Australia and
Antarctica that were constructed on the basis of the evidence from
Cretaceous rifting and early seafloor spreading alone (Williams et
al, 2011). Here, we examine the correlation of onshore geological
and geophysical structures in the context of the alternative
reconstruction models.
Full-fit reconstructions of Australia-Antarctica
The pre-rift configuration and early rifting history of
Australia and Antarctica has been debated for decades; the lack
of consensus partly reflects the difficulty to reconcile geological
and geophysical constraints from the eastern and western end
of the plate boundary system using rigid plate models. Relative
motion between Australia and Antarctic began during the Late
Jurassic (~160-140 Ma) with an early phase of continental
rifting followed by thermal subsidence (Totterdell et al., 2000).
Acceleration of continental extension at ~100 Ma (Totterdell
et al. 2000) was followed by continental break-up and the
commencement of very slow seafloor-spreading (~10 mm/yr half
rate) at ~83.5 Ma, though breakup was diachronous and occurred
much later to the east.
Despite clear evidence for the onset and progression of
Australian-Antarctic continental rifting, relatively few publications
have addressed these earliest plate tectonic motions. Full-fit Euler
poles are presented in Powell et al. (1988), and Royer and Sandwell
(1989). These two models differ predominantly in the direction
of motion prescribed to pre-96 Ma motion. Powell et al. (1988)
proposed that pre-breakup continental rifting and extension was
oriented NNE-SSW based on the pattern of faulting in the Bass
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S. E. Williams, J. M. Whittaker, and R. D. Müller
Figure 1.
Map of free-air satellite gravity (Andersen et al., 2010) illustrating major tectonic features of the Australian Southern Ocean. Br – Bremer Basin; GAB
– Great Australian Bight Basin; Ot – Otway Basin; So – Sorell Basin; Ba – Bass Basin; Gi – Gippsland Basin. Figure reproduced from Williams et al (2011).
and Gippsland Basins (figure 1), while Royer and Sandwell (1989)
alternatively proposed a NW-SE azimuth based on transfer faults
interpreted from seismic data from the Great Australian Bight.
More recent studies addressing the early opening between Australia
and Antarctica (Royer and Rollet, 1997; Tikku and Cande, 1999,
2000; Whittaker et al., 2007) use updated magnetic anomaly data
sets; however, none of the revised models go back further than
~96 Ma and so do not attempt to compute full-fit reconstructions.
More recently, Williams et al (2011) used palinspastic restoration
of crustal thickness grids for the conjugate extended margins to
evaluate various reconstructions and determined a new full-fit
pole of rotation that reconciled the restored continent boundaries
as well as other available constraints.
Testing Mesozoic reconstructions against older
structures
Australian-Antarctic fit reconstructions should result in a
realistic juxtaposition of geological terranes across the conjugate
margins. Since our reconstructions were derived independently
2
of fitting onshore geological structures, the former provide an
independent test of various proposed correlations. The method
for deriving a palinspastic full-fit plate configuration described
by Williams et al (2011) did not use as a quantitative constraint
the proposed correlations between ancient Palaeozoic and older
geological terrains in Australia and Antarctica – instead their
reconstructions were constrained by structures and variations in
crustal thickness within the extended margins. Here, we investigate
the implications of our preferred full-fit reconstruction, together
with the two end member scenarios for the lateral position of
Australia relative to Antarctica, for the proposed correlation of
pre-existing geological and geophysical structures within the two
continents.
We tested three alternative full-fit and early rifting models
for Australia-Antarctica (figure 2) for consistency with various
lines of evidence, including (i) the basin-scale extension
directions recorded within the conjugate margins, (ii) interpreted
correlations between conjugate features within the rifted
margins, and (iii) constraints (isochrons, fracture zones) for the
earliest phase of seafloor spreading. In this study we consider
Eastern Australasian Basins Symposium IV
Brisbane, QLD, 10–14 September, 2012
Full-fit reconstructions of the southern Australian margin and Antarctica
– implications for correlating geology between Australia and Antarctica
three scenarios – our preferred reconstruction model based
on palinspastic restoration of the extended crust within the
conjugate rifted margins, as well as two end-member scenarios,
which align the Australia several hundred kilometres to the east
or west relative to Antarctica.
(a) Preferred model: The Leeuwin and Vincennes Fracture Zones
(figure 1) are conjugates; this may be achieved by assuming
either (1) that the motion from the onset of continental
rifting (~160 Ma) until break-up at ~83.5 Ma is recorded by
the NW-SE trend of these structures (cf. Tikku and Cande,
1999) – implying that the major change in direction of
relative motion between Australia and Antarctica occurred
at ~chron 34 time (83.5 Ma), roughly coinciding with the
onset of seafloor spreading; or (2) that motion from the onset
of continental rifting (~160 Ma) until break-up at ~83.5
Ma is not recorded by the NW-SE trend of these structures,
but rather there is a change in plate motion at some point
between the onset of rifting and onset of seafloor spreading
(Williams et al, 2011).
(b) The Naturaliste model: The basic assumptions underlying
this model are that (1) the Naturaliste and Vincennes Fracture
Zones are conjugates, and that (2) motion from the onset of
continental rifting (~160 Ma) until break-up at ~83.5 Ma is
recorded by the NW-SE trend of these structures.
(c) Powell model: The model of Powell et al. (1988) (1) does
not align either the Naturaliste or the Leeuwin Fracture
zones with the Vincennes Fracture Zone and (2) predicts a
NE-SW direction of motion during continental rifting that
is significantly different from that implied by the models
described above.
Links between Australia and Antarctica
Southwest Australia and Western Wilkes Land
The geology of the southwestern corner of Australia
records the Albany-Fraser orogeny, formed as a result of
collision between the southern margin of the Yilgarn Craton
and the Mawson Craton (Fitzsimons, 2003; Boger, 2011). The
orogeny is thought to have occurred in two stages, both during
the Mesoproterozoic, and both of which can be identified in
units exposed in East Antarctica as well as southwest WA. The
geological provinces shown in figure 3 are based on the work
of Boger (2011). Various metamorphic complexes within the
Bunger Hills area are correlated with the Biranup complex in
WA (both with metamorphism ages predominantly within stage
2 of the orogenesis), while the rocks to the east of Bunger
Hills are correlated more closely with the Nornalup Complex.
Dredge samples from the Naturaliste Plateau (Halpin et al,
2008) suggest that the continental basement of the plateau also
has affinity to the Albany-Fraser Orogen.
A further possible line of evidence linking Australia and
Antarctica is the Darling Fault, a major N-S structure along
the western margin of Australia (Figure 3). Correlation of this
feature with its interpreted continuation beneath the Denman
Glacier (white dashed line in figure 3) has been used to estimate
the relative position of Australia and Antarctica (e.g. Beeson et
al, 1995).
Brisbane, QLD, 10–14 September, 2012
Figure 2.
Figure showing three end member full-fit models; Reconstructions
show three possible locations of Australia relative to a fixed Antarctica at 160
Ma, prior to the onset of rifting and eventual breakup of these continents.
Filled green polygons show palinspastic full-fit reconstruction after Williams
et al (2011); Blue polygon (Powell model) shows a westernmost end-member
location for Australia based on alignment of the Naturaliste Fracture Zone
with the Vincennes Fracture Zone; Orange polygon (Naturaliste model) is an
easternmost end member full-fit location for Australia. The graticule shows
lines of longitude and latitude at 10° intervals.
Figure 3 shows correlations between southwest Australia
and East Australia according to the three reconstructions under
consideration. The reconstruction of Powell (1988) satisfies the
postulated alignment of the Darling Fault and Denman Glacier,
whereas the in the other reconstructions the projection of the
Darling Fault into Antarctica lies significantly to the east of
the Denman Glacier. The different reconstructions also have
implications for the variation of the surface extent of units
related to the Albany-Fraser origin. Using the outlines defined
by Boger (2011), the Preferred model allows for the mapped
width of this belt to be fairly continuous between Australia and
Antarctica (the true extent in Antarctica is poorly constrained
due to ice cover) and a continuation of the Biranup complex
to continue along its observed trend in WA to the Bunger Hills
units.
Eyre Peninsula and Eastern Wilkes Land
Correlations between the Eyre Peninsula in South Australia
and Eastern Wilkes Land are discussed by Goodge and Fanning
(2010) and Veevers (2012). In the Eyre Peninsula, Archean and
Paleoproterozoic metamorphic units are juxtaposed against
Paleoproterozoic igneous units across the Kalinjala mylonite
zone. Archean and Paleoproterozoic units are observed
within the Terre Adelie area of Antarctica, with shear fabrics
suggesting that the Mertz shear zone forms that eastern
boundary of these units (with the caveat that rocks to the east
of the shear zone are hidden under ice). On the basis of their
similar dextral kinematics, and the correspondence in ages of
both of the structures themselves and the units they cut, Goodge
and Fanning (2010) correlate the Kalinjala mylonite zone with
the Mertz shear zone.
When placed in the candidate full-fit reconstructions
(figure 4), the poles of rotation for the preferred model match
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S. E. Williams, J. M. Whittaker, and R. D. Müller
Figure 3.
Juxtaposition of geological provinces and structures between
southern Western Australia and Western Wilkes Land, according to three different
reconstructions for the Australia and Antarctica prior to Mesozoic rifting. (A)
Preferred model (b) Naturaliste Model; (c) Powell et al (1988) model. Geological
provinces and naming conventions based on Fitzsimons (2003), Halpin et al
(2008) and Boger (2011). Pink-filled circle shows site of Naturaliste Plateau
dredge samples described by Halpin et al (2008) DG – Denman Glacier; BH
– Bunger Hills; Nc – Nornalup Complex; Bc – Biranup Complex; Fc – Fraser
Complex; Cc – Corumup Complex; PB – Perth Basin; DF – Darling Fault.
Figure 4.
Juxtaposition of geological provinces and structures between
the Eyre Peninsula and Eastern Wilkes Land, according to three different
reconstructions for the Australia and Antarctica prior to Mesozoic rifting.
(A) Preferred model (b) Naturaliste Model; (c) Powell et al (1988) model.
Geological provinces and naming conventions based on Goodge and Fanning
(2011), Veevers (2012). KMZ – Kalinjala Mylonite Zone; MSZ – Mertz Shear
Zone; ArG – Archean granitoid; ArP – Archean paragneiss; PrM – Proterozoic
Metasediments; PrG – Proterozoic granitoid; PrPM – Proterozoic paragneiss
and migmatite; PrPh – Proterozoic phyllite.
these structures very well, consistent with them forming a single
continuous feature prior to Gondwana breakup. The Naturaliste
model yields a dextral offset of greater than 300 km between the
projections of the two structures, while the Powell model yields
a sinistral offset of just less than 300 km.
Figure 5 shows a comparison of the three reconstruction
models for the Victoria-Tasmania-Northern Victoria Land sector
within Gondwana. The figure illustrates the space problems
associated with the two end-member scenarios – the Naturaliste
model results in a large gap between the palinspatically restored
boundaries of Australia and Antarctica (too big to be explained by
restoring the South Tasman Rise northwards), while the Powell
model results in overlap in the Otway and Sorell Basins. Note
that in these reconstructions Tasmania is fixed to Australia. Some,
though far from all, of this overlap could be avoided by accounting
for extension on the Bass Strait and Gippsland Basin. Large strikeslip motions between mainland Australia and Tasmania have been
invoked to completely resolve this overlap (Tikku and Cande,
2000), but aeromagnetic data for the Bass Strait do not appear to
support this interpretation (Cayley, 2011).
Tasmania-Victoria and Northern Victoria Land
Geological correlations between Eastern Australia, Tasmania
and Northern Victoria Land in Antarctica have been discussed by
various authors including Foster and Gleadow (1992), Gibson et
al (2010), Cayley (2011) and Moore and Betts (2011). Some of
the details of these correlations differ between these authors, but
other correlations are less controversial. For example the Moyston
Fault (also referred to as the Woorndoo Fault; Foster and Gleadow,
1992) in western Victoria is a likely counterpart of the Leap Year
Fault in Northern Victoria Land – Moore and Betts (2011) identify
these structures as both being part of a west-dipping Cambrian
subduction zone along the eastern margin of Gondwana.
4
Of the three different reconstruction models, the correlation of
geological provinces is hardest to reconcile within the Naturaliste
model (figure 5b). In this reconstruction the projections of the
Moyston and Leap Year Faults are offset by over 400 km. Within
Eastern Australasian Basins Symposium IV
Brisbane, QLD, 10–14 September, 2012
Full-fit reconstructions of the southern Australian margin and Antarctica
– implications for correlating geology between Australia and Antarctica
Figure 6.
Reconstruction of aeromagnetic anomaly maps for Australia and
Antarctica. (A) Preferred model (b) Naturaliste Model; (c) Powell et al (1988)
model. Data for Australia are from Milligan et al, (2010), data from Antarctica
from Goodge and Finn (2010), Damaske et al (2003).
Aeromagnetic anomaly comparison for TasmaniaVictoria versus Northern Victoria Land
Figure 5.
Juxtaposition of geological provinces and structures between
eastern Australia and George V Land-Cape Adare, according to three different
reconstructions for the Australia and Antarctica prior to Mesozoic rifting.
(A) Preferred model (b) Naturaliste Model; (c) Powell et al (1988) model.
Geological provinces and naming conventions based on Gibson et al (2011),
Cayley (2011), Moore and Betts (2011). GZ – Glenelg Zone; GSZ – GrampiansStavely Zone; SZ – Stawell Zone; BZ – Bendigo Zone; MZ – Melbourne Zone;
Etas – East Tasmania; WTas –West Tasmania; RCB – Rocky Cape Block; WT
– Wilson Terrane; BT – Bowers Terrane; RBT – Robertson Bay Terrane; MF –
Moyston Fault; LYF – Leap Year Fault.
the Powell model, the two faults are aligned on an almost N-S
trend. For the preferred model based on palinspastic restoration
of Mesozoic extension, a slight bend is required to link the two
structures, but such a bend is consistent with bending already
observed in both the Moyston and Leap Year Faults as they
approach the respective coastlines.
Brisbane, QLD, 10–14 September, 2012
A further means to correlate the geological fabric between
Eastern Australia and Antarctica is to use aeromagnetic data. For
the part of Antarctica conjugate to Australia, aeromagnetic data are
only available east of 145° longitude. The aeromagnetic anomaly
image for Antarctica shown in figure 6 is a synthesis of data sets
taken directly from the of Finn and Goodge (2010), and importantly
incorporates data for the Oates Coast and Northern Victoria Land
originally presented by Damaske et al (2003). For Australia, we
use data from the fifth edition of the aeromagnetic anomaly map of
Australia (Milligan et al, 2011). The data have been reduced to the
pole (RTP) using a variable magnetic inclination RTP algorithm
to remove the latitude dependence of the induced anomaly shapes
(Milligan pers comm., 2011). Although the data from Antarctica
are total magnetic intensity (TMI), the data shown for Antarctica
mostly lie close to the south magnetic pole at magnetic latitudes
greater than 80°, so RTP anomalies would not differ significantly
in shape from those plotted.
The aeromagnetic anomaly maps are shown reconstructed
in the three candidate full-fit configurations in figure 6. Within
Australia, the anomaly field is clearly subdued over Paleozoic
crust in eastern Australia compared to the much larger amplitudes
observed in the Gawler Craton bounding this crust to the west.
Within East Antarctica anomalies are similarly subdued in the
area for which aeromagnetic coverage is available. Goodge and
Finn (2010) use satellite magnetic anomalies to define the edge
of the Terre Adelie Craton (adjacent to the Gawler craton within
their reconstruction) as lying just east of the area covered by
Eastern Australasian Basins Symposium IV
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S. E. Williams, J. M. Whittaker, and R. D. Müller
aeromagnetic data. Within the strip of data along the coast of East
Antarctica, several 20-30 km half wavelength, positive anomalies
are observed trending broadly N-S within the generally subdued
area. Several similar anomalies are observed within eastern
Australia. Finn et al (1999) showed that the anomalies within
the Bowers Terrane and the Grampians-Stavely Zone could both
be explained as resulting from forearc oceanic crust juxtaposed
against continental margin crust by thrust faulting, likely as part
of the same west dipping subduction regime. The NNW-SSE
trend of anomalies in the Grampians-Stavely Zone differs from
the more NNE-SSW trend of anomalies to the north and south,
suggesting no direct connection between western Victoria and
Tasmania (Cayley, 2011). Our preferred reconstruction allows for
a continuation of the magnetic sources between the Bowers and
Grampians-Stavely Zones that bends around Tasmania parallel to
the anomaly trends observed in the western Bass Basin.
offset older structures prior to Gondwana breakup. Both sinistral
(Flottman and Oliver, 1994) and dextral (Cayley 2011) shear senses
have been invoked, and the magnitudes of any such displacements
are poorly constrained. For our comparisons we assume that little
significant lateral displacement between the two continents has
taken place throughout much of the Neoproterozoic and Paleozoic.
Implications for Basins on Australia’s
Southern Margin
Determining a robust model for the full-fit configuration of
Australia and Antarctica has important implications for studying
the sedimentary basins that developed within the conjugate
continental margins. The candidate reconstruction models here
imply significantly different directions for the overall relative
motion of the plates during the rifting – the model of Powell
(1988) predicts overall NE-SW initial opening (figure 7c), while
Discussion
Comparison of the different candidate
reconstructions
Of the models investigated in this study, the Naturaliste model
yields the greatest discrepancies between the basement geology
of Australian and Antarctica. The preferred model produces a
strikingly consistent alignment of the Kalinjala and Mertz shear
zones, and is consistent with the interpreted continuation of the
Albany-Fraser orogenic belt into Antarctica. One difficulty with
this model is the proposed alignment of the Darling Fault with the
Denman glacier, an alignment better represented using the poles
of rotation of Powell (1988). In the Tasmania-Northern Victoria
Land sector, a plate configuration intermediate between these two
models (ie figures 5a and 5c) would yield a better match to the
onshore geology.
Williams et al. (2011) tested each of these models using
palinspastic restoration of the extended continental margins based
on crustal thickness grids derived from gravity inversion (Kusznir,
2008), and found that a good fit to the unstretched continent
outlines can be achieved within a reconstruction that aligns the
Leeuwin and Vincennes Fracture zones at full-fit. The Naturaliste
model alignment leaves a significant gap between South Australia
and eastern Wilkes Land, while a model with initial NE-SW
rifting (Powell et al, 1988) yields significant overlap in the
unstretched continent boundaries in this region and further east.
A further model proposed by Royer and Sandwell (1989) appears
to significantly overestimate the amount of closure between
Australia and Antarctica based on restoration of crustal thickness
data. In the light of the geological correlations tested here, the
full-fit pole of rotation derived by Williams et al (2011) based on
palinspastic reconstruction appears also to reconcile the onshore
geological structures in each part of the conjugate margin system.
The geological units that have been discussed here, particularly
in Western and South Australia, are much older than the age of
Gondwana breakup. For these alignments to help us to determine
the most robust reconstruction for Australia and Antarctica shortly
before Late Jurassic-Early Cretaceous rifting. The boundary along
which Australia and Antarctica broke apart in the Mesozoic may
have acted as a zone of intraplate tearing during the Paleozoic
and earlier (Veevers, 2000). Some authors have argued for lateral
motions across this tear during the Paleozoic which could have
6
Figure 7.
Synthetic flowlines showing the relative plate motions of Australia
(pink) and Antarctica (blue) from the onset of rifting to the time of the earliest
seafloor spreading isochron in the Bight Basin (~83 Ma), according to three
different reconstruction models (A) Preferred model, modified after Whittaker
et al (submitted) (b) Naturaliste Model; (c) Powell et al (1988) model.
Eastern Australasian Basins Symposium IV
Brisbane, QLD, 10–14 September, 2012
Full-fit reconstructions of the southern Australian margin and Antarctica
– implications for correlating geology between Australia and Antarctica
the Naturaliste model predicts overall NW-SE which is highly
oblique to the margins in the Tasmania-Northern Victoria Land
sector (figure 7b). The full-fit reconstruction pole of Williams et
al (2011) yields an overall NNW-SSE displacement. Such a model
avoids a large overlap between Tasmania and Cape Adare that
arises if the initial rifting direction is assumed to follow the trend
of the Leeuwin and Vincennes Fracture Zones (Tikku and Cande,
1999, 2000).
Finn, C., Moore, D., Damaske, D., and Mackey, T., 1999,
Aeromagnetic legacy of early Paleozoic subduction along the
Pacific margin of Gondwana: Geology, v. 27, p. 1087.
These opening directions describe the overall plate motions
over many tens of millions of years, from the beginning of rifting
(~160 Ma) until the earliest seafloor spreading anomalies in the
Bight Basin (~83 Ma). Hence, it would not be surprising for there
to have been variability in the relative plate motions during this
timespan. Whittaker et al (submitted) used the full-fit pole of
Williams et al (2011) together with an additional pole of rotation at
~100 Ma, producing a set of reconstructions that better reconciles
observations from the Kerguelen-Broken Ridge section of the
Australia-Antarctica plate boundary to the west of the continental
rift zone. The 100 Ma change in plate motions corresponds to a
regional plate reorganization (e.g. Veevers, 2000). In this scenario
(figure 7a), the opening direction for basins on the southern margin
was initially N-S, followed by a change to more NW-SE motion
after 100 Ma that persists until a further acceleration and change
to N-S relative motion at ~49 Ma. The 100 Ma change in plate
motions corresponds to an increase in subsidence rates (Totterdell
et al, 2000) and more oblique relative motions in the Otway and
Sorell basins.
Flottmann, T., and Oliver, R., 1994, Review of PrecambrianPalaeozoic relationships at the craton margins of southeastern
Australia and adjacent Antarctica: Precambrian Research, v. 69,
p. 293-306.
Acknowledgements
We thank Peter Milligan of Geoscience Australia for providing
the RTP magnetic data of the Australian continent, and George
Gibson for valuable discussions. S.E. Williams and R.D. Müller
were supported by Australian Research Council grant FL0992245;
J. Whittaker was supported by Statoil. Figures were created using
GPlates and ArcGIS.
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S. E. Williams, J. M. Whittaker, and R. D. Müller
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Eastern Australasian Basins Symposium IV
Brisbane, QLD, 10–14 September, 2012